Problem-Oriented Policing: A Case Study

In the last three decades, several concepts have been advanced to organize efforts to improve policing. Among them have been team policing, neighborhood policing, community policing, zero-tolerance policing and problem-oriented policing. Herman Goldstein was the first to propose problem-oriented policing in 1979. Problem-oriented policing is a policing strategy that involves the identification and analysis of specific crime and disorder problems, in order to develop effective response strategies in conjunction with ongoing assessment. The emphasis in problem-oriented policing is on directing attention to the broad range of problems the community expects the police to handle–the problems that constitute the business of the police and on

Hopeful in this paper will give the strengths and weakness, when, why and who started SARA Model, Problem-Oriented Policing and Community- Oriented Policing. These are methods that will be use throughout the law enforcement filed. And know the key components and how to use them will beneficial to you as you progress in your file of chose with the law enforcement filed.

Community policing has evolved to be the most used strategy for policing. “It is an approach to crime detection and prevention that provides police officers and supervisors with new tools for addressing recurrent problems that plague communities and consume a majority of police agency time and resources” (Peak, 2012, 65). It has been defined by various people differently. But all the definitions have similar principles (Chappell, 2009). They focus on proactive problem solving and create relationships with the community to address any issue that may arise. Community policing is a combination of client-oriented and problem-oriented policing.

Community oriented policing is a policing strategy based on the notion that community interaction and support can help control crime and reduce fear, with community members helping to identify suspects, detain vandals and bring problems to the attention of police. It is a philosophy that combines traditional aspects of law enforcement with prevention measures, problem-solving, community engagement, and community partnerships (Ref. 1).

Although many may find community policing and problem-oriented policing to fall in the same category, there is (surprisingly) a difference between the two. For one, community policing has many definitions. For some, it means instituting foot and bicycle patrols and doing acts pertaining to the ideal bond between police officers and their community. While for others it means maintaining order and cleaning up neighborhoods in desperate need of repair (Dunham & Alpert, 2005). However, an idyllic definition of community policing is altering the traditional definition of crime control to community problem-solving and promising to transform the way police do their job. Within the past two decades, there has been much research on community

Problem-oriented policing presents an alternative approach to policing that has gained attention in recent years among many police agencies. Problem-oriented policing grew out of twenty years of research into police practices, and differs from traditional policing strategies in four significant ways.

The SARA model is recognized as a problem solving methods that is used and practice by the problem oriented policing. SARA analytical process can be used as a beneficial, but is not the only way to approach problem solving. When you implement problem- oriented policing is it great to use the SARA model. The SARA model has four stages which include Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Assessment. Even though policing have many advantages by using the SARA model, it is important to use the SARA model correctly otherwise problem solving can be unsuccessful. By dividing the overall project into separate stages, SARA will help you to ensure that the steps are established in proper order. For example, solutions cannot be accepted before an analysis of the problem is happening. The four stages of SARA have impacted policing to work as a team and to find correct answers to major problems, therefore the model has to be addressed and use correctly.

The Community Orientented Policing Services wrote about how the events after Ferguson affected the Community Policing aspect for officers on the job. Community Policing is a topic of discussion because people do not like the rules that officers have to follow in their jobs. The services believe that everyone is a leader not just police officers, but they have noticed that the Community thinks they are just followers who give information to the police. From the Wisconsin’s chiefs point of view he states “fully 80 percent of African-American respondents said “yes,” in contrast to 37 percent of White respondents. Three-quarters of African-American respondents said that they had “little or no confidence in the investigations” into the shooting;

When looking at the Problem-Oriented Policing (POP) website we see that it provides information to law enforcement departments around the country giving them information on how to deal with a significant amount of community problems (Problem-Oriented Policing, 2017). The website of POP shows in details community issues such as vandalism, street prostitution, and domestic violence for law enforcement departments to gain ideas how they can be addressed. There have been large numbers of police departments that have taken advantage of the enormous amount of resources provided to them by the POP two such departments the Oakland Police Department in Los Angeles, and the other being Lindgate Police Department in Nevada (Calgues, 2015).

The purpose of this paper is to analyze and discuss the three different policing strategies known as, broken windows, zero tolerance, and problem oriented policing. Each of these strategies have both their pros and cons throughout this paper I will be describing each of these strategies along with discussing a few articles in relation to these strategies. In light of the recent tension between law enforcement and the community, specifically minorities ill also be discussing how these strategies have either helped or hurt communities.

Local law enforcement can facilitate information gathering among ethnic or religious community groups with whom police have established a relationship. It will generally be citizens who observe the unusual groups of men living in apartments or motels, or unusual behavior at flight schools in their own community, and could be expected to report such observations to the local police. Problem solving models typically used in community policing are well suited for preventing and responding to possible terrorist activity. Using existing data sources, agencies can conduct target vulnerability assessments and develop risk-management and crisis plans. Community policing is not in itself a tactic or strategy, but instead a philosophical approach to how policing is conducted. At its core, community-oriented policing is based on law enforcement and the community joining together to identify and address issues of crime and social disorder.

Community policing consist of following three key components: Community Partnerships, Organizational Transformation, and Problem Solving. Community Partnership is the collaborative partnerships between the law enforcement agency and the individuals and organizations they serve to develop solutions to problems and enhance trust in police. Organizational Transformation is the alignment of organizational management, structure, personnel, and information systems to support community partnerships and proactive problem solving. Problem Solving is the process of engaging in the proactive and systematic examination of identified problems to develop and rigorously evaluate effective responses.

Community Policing is a value system which infuses a police department, in which the main organizational goal is working helpfully with individual citizens, groups of citizens, and both public and private organizations to identify and resolve issues which possibly effect the livability of specific neighborhoods, areas, or the city as a whole. Community policing can be beneficial to communities. Community policing can help prevent crimes from occurring. As officers get to know a community, they also get to know what is right and wrong with it. Typically, officers remain entitled to an area where crime happens often and as such they are left with fighting it as it is going or after it happened. In community policing neighborhoods, the officers are able to tell what might happen and as

Problem oriented policing is a method of policing designed to focus on areas of increased criminal activity or hot spots. This method is executed by analyzing crime data, searching for solutions, implementing policies, and deploying resources which results in a reduction of crime. Herman Goldstein, a professor at University of Wisconsin- Madison, developed this method in 1979. This method of policing is one of the most widely used and accepted techniques used in policing today (Weisburb, Telep, Hinckle, and Eck, 2010).

There are multiple approaches to engaging a police force with the community in order to most effectively prevent and respond to crime, and considering the relative strengths and weakness of each of these strategic models will demonstrate how models can impact the operation of daily policing practices and activities. The model under discussion here is called community oriented policing (COP), and focuses on building relationships and rapport between officers and the community in order to more effectively prevent crime. It is augmented by a model called problem solving policing (PSP), and depends upon rank-and-file officers identifying community problem areas through direct observation and analysis. Each model excels at slightly different things, and in practice most police agencies deploy a mix of models. By examining the Miami-Dade Police Department's handbook for school resource officers, it will be possible to view a COP/PSP policy in action in order to better understand how these models practically affect policing.